The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1887-10-06

and Kingdoms OF the world, and ! am
confident we will ere long develop
natural gas sufficient to abolish night
and enGghten the children of
men and coons and wolves till the
crack of doom. We have gold and
silver enough to sustain the credit of
the United States forever on coin
basis. But we haven't found it all vet.
This is confidential. The copper Of
Tennessee, if manufactured into cul-
mary wares, would be sufficient to
poison egg custard and pickles for the
whole human race until time shall be
no more Your old neighbor, whom
you left behind forty years ago, bare
footed, in tow breeches and bedtick
"galluses," with his sack under his
arm, always on the lookout for bush
el of corn or n "middling" of meat now
laughs the capitalist to scorn who Of
iers him less than $4,000 for his nah.
ganese ridge OF his zinc mountain. In
the wealth OF the vegetable kingdom
we are unsurpassed. We can produce
in luxuriant abundance everything
that grows in the temperate regions
of the earth. In the early settlement
OF Tennessee there were no markets,
no factories, no machine shops, no
! luxuries, no railroads, and, owing to
our geographical position, we remain.
ed until within recent years, thor
oughly backwOods people, isolated
and cut off from the rest of the civil
lied world by natural barriers. We
were race OF hardy backwoods pion-
GERS, making way for coming genera
tions of demonstrating the virgin
forests, battling with Indian savages
at our very doors, and fighting for in
dependence in the distant colonies
laying the foundations of grand
commonwealth and mighty republic!
The struggles and deeds of our valiant
and invincible ancestry have made
every square mile of Tennessee histor-
ic ground Every neighb9rhood and
every section from the cloudland
heights of the Roam to the banks of
that mighty river are associated in
history, in song and tradition with
thrilling incidents Of those perilous
and heroic times. | was born on .
spot intimately associated with one OF
the most glorious events of our revolu.
tionary history. | was born in East
Tennessee, in my beloved county OF
Carter, on the banks OF the Watauga
a mountain river as beautiful
that which flowed through Eden
have stood upon its sun-painted
cliffs at early dawn, and looking down
into its CLASSY waters, there beheld
mirrored in coors of crimson and
gold, the gorgeous images OF the morn
ing rising. from her bed Of roses and
peeping from her windows in the east
| have stood upon its banks at twi
light and looked downward upon 4
bending sky as soft and radiant with
trembling stars as that which bend,
above. That cyrstal river trayersel
valley as lovely as the vale at Cash
\ mere, skirted by hills and environeC
. by mountains; and mirrors in it,
r translucent bosom chains of scenery
as beautiful as paradise and gorgeous
: as Mahomet's vision Of heaven.
: have stood upon the summit of thu
, Roam, above the cloud.leveI anC
through the atmosphere as clear a
2 ether, gazed upon the territory OF 81,
great states have looked down OF
5 the valley of the Watauga sleeping a
: its feet as peacefully as n child. Thel
2 ! have seen the storm clouds gathe
T. at my feet and hide the world iron
= view. Above, billowy ocean of mol
!, ton silver, made glorious by cloud
J, less sun below, the angry storm-go,
g pavilioned in the inky blackness @
J, condensing vapors. Then have seel
e him let loose the red lightnings whicl
|. danced along the mountain like spil
+ its of light to the music of the rollin
d thunder the bowling winds and tn
;, roar of falling torrents. Then / hav
n seen him fall asleep and glide away t
: his invisible chamber in the peace
h ful air 1t was there in that valley, o
= the south bank Of the WNtauga, 3
It Sycamore shoals, that the stalwal
$ pioneer of Tennessee assembled o
+ the 25th day of September, 1870, an
e organized the expedition which Gu
l. minated on the 9TH day of the follow
1t ing October in the thrice glorious ba
b tie OF Kings mountain. Cornwall
st had captured Charleston and WI
L. moving northward into the heart
'e the Carolinas. He had sent Ferg,
$, son and Tarlton with heavy detacl
y ments to scour the country on its rigl
n and left, to organize Tory recruits ar
l. to intimidate and subdue the patriot
~ This movement of the British arm
d added to the capture of Charlesto
re had east a shadow Of the deepest dc
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